Power BI has this excessive functionality where you can go and download preset layouts which make your Power BI reports look more effective. There is a simple trick to create these Power BI layouts.

You can create layouts in PowerPoint and then convert them into images. After that, you can insert them into your Power BI report as an image and send the image right to the back.

Let us learn to create Power BI layouts step by step as shown below

1. Open the PowerPoint, select the Design tab on the ribbon and choose a theme as shown in the image below. 2. Now you have to insert shapes on the selected theme. To do so, go to Insert tab on the ribbon and click on the Shapes option to select the shape you desire as shown in the image below.

3. After you select the shape, you have to select the color of the shape by clicking on the Format tab and then clicking on the Shape Fill option to select the color of your choice.

 

4. Now you can give the effect to your shape by going to the Format tab again and clicking on Shape Effects You can select any of the shape effects such as shadow as shown in below image.

5. After doing so many changes your layouts, it finally looks like the image as shown below.

6. Next, you have to save the layout in PowerPoint as an image on your system to further use it in Power BI.

 

7. Once you save the image, its time to open the Power BI desktop and go to the Home tab on the ribbon to select the Image option in the Insert This will allow you to import the image into Power BI that you saved on your PC.

8. After the image is imported you can resize it as much as you want as shown in the image below.

9. Now that we have imported the image, we have to set it to back to create a perfect Power BI layouts. To send the image to back click on Format tab and select the Send Backward option to click on Send to Back as shown in the image below.

This is how you can create the layout in PowerPoint and import to Power BI. You can also directly download layouts into Power BI from https://powerbi.tips/layouts/.

It is a .pbit file which you can download and open easily in your Power BI desktop. It is displayed in Power BI as shown in below image.

Then you have to open the data source using Get data option, using which you want to create a report. After you load the data in Power BI, you can simply select the visuals you want to display and drag the columns from fields pane Check out How to Create a first Power BI Dashboard step by step.

Power BI layouts help you to create well-organized and presentable reports. Before using Power BI layouts, you need to know about its features.

Features of Power BI Layouts

Layouts are custom

Every layout is a completely custom setup.  Each visual has been designed precisely so that the presentation of the data should look the best.  In other words, the visuals fonts, labels, label precision, x or y-axis has been turned off or on or altered in some way.

Since the layout has been extremely formalized, you may not identify the visual or feel like something is missing, for example, the x-axis.  This was intended and done to make the data story. You can change all the properties by clicking on the visual and choosing the Paint Roller to modify the properties.

 

Duplicating a layout page

After you create a layout of your choice, you may want to reuse that page layout several times.  In order to do so, just Right Click on the report layout tab that you desire and select Duplicate Page option.

Delete Unwanted layout page

Most of the layout files comprise of various report pages.  Some of the layout documents have different layouts per PBIT file.  Therefore, there will be circumstances where you want to remove unwanted pages.  To do so, simply Right Click on the report tab that you wish to delete and select Delete Page option.

The Layout files are generated with many different report tabs so that you can have absolute flexibility.  For instance, you may want the main page with only one visual and slicer, but later in the report, you require a three-column layout. By adding many different designs within one Power BI Layouts file you can decide what works best with your data.

Visuals layout in the selection pane

In the selection pane, you will find multiple items which denote each item on the report page.  Every item in the Selection pane efforts to be laid out with appropriate names and in order of left to right typically.  There will be some exceptions to this rule, but items will be laid out as spontaneous as possible.

Note: If the selection window is not displayed you can turn this on by clicking on the View ribbon, and then check the box with the name Selection Pane.

Report pages background

All the Layout Report pages come with a background image.  If you do not need this background image you can remove it very easily.  To remove the background image, verify that no visuals are selected.  You can achieve this by pressing the ESC key.  Then in the Visualizations pane enlarge the Page Background.  To remove the background image, click the little X next to the image name, found under the Transparency setting. By default, the Image Fit will get set to Fit.

Note: If a background image is removed, you won’t be able to replace it.  So, once it is removed, you cannot re-apply a background image.

Changing Visuals

Now, not all layouts will be able to fulfill your report needs.  If you want to add a custom visual or change a visual from a map to a bar chart you have to change the visual.  Although this is a predefined Power BI layouts you can change the visual without any difficulty.  To modify the visual, first select the visual you want to change, and then on the Visualizations pane click on a new visual type.

Moving Visuals

Visuals on the report page are locked by default and hence you cannot change or move them directly.  There is a setting to move the locked visual in Power BI.  The setting is known as Lock Objects and it can be changed by going to the View Ribbon and then Unchecking the Lock Objects item.  By unchecking this option, you will be able to move the visuals anywhere around the page.

Adding Custom Report Themes

The layouts have been created using the default colors for Power BI Desktop.  Though, once you have linked your data you can easily add any color theme of your choice.  You can make color themes using JSON.

You can learn more:

• The Ultimate Guide of Power BI download and Installation
• 5 Steps to Create the First Power BI Dashboard
• Download Power BI Template – Power BI Tips & Ticks
• You may wonder whether you choose the right template to use in PowerPoint

Conclusion

Power BI layouts give the ease to work with layouts. In a few simple steps, you can insert your own layouts in Power BI. By following these few simple steps, you can make add your own layout. Power BI Layouts helps in making your report attractive.